I have written about my love affair with The Best for Babes Foundationhere, here, here and here. Bettina and Danielle work tirelessly to help moms like you "beat the booby traps" - the cultural and institutional barriers that prevent moms from achieving their personal breastfeeding goals. Today, however, I am asking YOU to help THEM.
They are currently "sitting pretty" to receive a donation of $20,000 from the Chase Community Giving Program to support their cause, but NEED YOUR VOTE to maintain their position in the top 200 until the contest closes at midnight EDT on Monday, July 12, 2010! This will take no more than two minutes of your time and will benefit moms and babies everywhere today and in the future.
So if you are on Facebook, please add the Chase app so you can vote for them, share the link on your profile and rally your friends any way you can so they will vote too! (I know, I don't like adding apps either, but after voting I just went to Account, Application settings (top right of your FB page) and clicked on the "X" beside the Chase app to remove it - EASY PEASY!)
Why did I vote for Best for Babes? Well aside from the aforementioned love affair, they got my vote (and should get yours too) because they:
inspire, prepare & empower moms - to give breastfeeding a makeover and give moms the solutions they need to make it work!
believe ALL moms deserve to make an informed feeding decision, & to be cheered on, coached and celebrated without pressure, judgment or guilt, whether they breastfeed for 2 days, 2 months 2 years, or not at all.
put pressure on the booby traps, not moms, so that they can achieve their personal breastfeeding goals!
are raising awareness of the WHO Code and how violations hurt both breastfeeding and formula-feeding moms
attract moms on the fence about breastfeeding with positive images (see above), information and resources
boost & complement the efforts of the entire breastfeeding movement, including the United States Breastfeeding Committee, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, Baby-Friendly Hospitals, and many more
are funded entirely by WHO Code compliant sponsors with all individual donations going directly towards education & outreach
are building the “mother of all causes” through grassroots and social media such as Facebook and Twitter to restore breastfeeding to its rightful place among highly visible disease foundations like Komen, American Heart Association and the Juvenile Diabetes foundation because breastfeeding lowers the risk of all these diseases and many more, plus it reduces the burden on the environment!
are the only non-profit that is running a modern and innovative ad campaign that has the potential to reach millions of moms. With the CHASE community giving grant, they can leverage donated media space and run the campaign on billboards across the country for a fraction of the regular cost AND get more celebrity interviews that will put this issue on the map of the media and the mainstream in a positive and game-changing way.
After our last attempt at being recognized for our product, you may think we were a glutton for punishment, wouldn't you? Well, I dusted off my pants, dried my tears and did some extensive research on the other programs out there before I got back on my horse. And I am pleased to share with you that, after doing said research and narrowing my choices down, I found myself chatting with the people at PTPA Media (before I submitted my product), and my faith in these "awards programs" was somewhat reinstated. At least enough to give it another go.
During my "pre-submission" chat with PTPA Media, they were completely up-front about ALL the fees involved to be evaluated by their product testers as well as the licensing of the Seal of Approval if you indeed are named a winner. Everything we discussed was also clearly outlined on their website on an easy-to-find page.
Let's be blunt here. These awards programs are a business, plain and simple. They are out to make a profit just like the rest of us. Having said that, there are businesses out there that provide a good product/service/customer care and then there are others that.. well.. don't. Guess which one I am going to choose to deal with?
However, I'll admit that I was nonetheless expecting the worst (still licking my wounds I suppose), but was pleasantly surprised with the level of customer service that I received from PTPA Media. Every email, every phonecall, every voicemail and every letter that I was promised, I received. There were no surprises, no delays and no misunderstandings. Everything that I paid for, that was CLEARLY explained to me, I received. This makes Wendy a happy girl! (I love happy endings!) :-)
As you may already know, I am a huge proponent of extraordinary customer service. Not just good, not just excellent, extraordinary. And if you've ever had the occasion to deal with me on a customer service issue, then you already know that I won't stop until you are happy. Really happy. I want to make you say, "Wow!". Aside from the obvious reasons that customer service is so important to us, I believe that this, along with web 2.0 practices (I'll quote Peter Shankman here) transparency, brevity, top-of-mind and relevancy, FLATTENS THE PLAYING FIELD for smaller companies like ours to compete with the "big guys". This is the beauty of doing business in today's world. And I love it!
But let's get back to the award! We received some great feedback (both positive and not so much), all of which is super useful for us going forward with new product development and current product improvements. I will now share some of the accolades with you... *blushing*
"This product more than met my expectations. At first, when wearing the hands free pumping support, I was very stiff and slow in my movements as I was unsure how supportive the product would be in holding my breast pump. In a short period of time, I realized that the breast pump was secure and I was able to move normally without worrying about my breast pump falling off. I inserted batteries in my breast pump so as to not be restricted by the cord length and then attempted various activities. I was able to clean my house, prepare meals, surf the internet, type emails, read books, knit, and interact and play with my 2-1/2 year old and 6 month old, all while pumping. In addition, I pumped with the PumpEase hands-free pumping support while nursing on the other side. With all these activities undertaken while wearing the support, the breast pump was held securely. At no time did it feel like the breast pump felt loose or in danger of falling off. The hands free pumping support held the breast pump on my breast with evenly distributed pressure in such a way that was more consistent and secure than holding the breast pump by hand, resulting in an increased amount of milk being expressed."
"The quality met my requirements. The product appeared very well made and was very easy to care for. It cleaned up very well and dried quickly. I wore the product for lengthy periods on its own and with the breast pump in order to see if it would begin to sag or stretch out. After lengthy and day to day use, the support maintained it's shape, and comfort without stretching out or becoming loose."
"The hands free pumping support is very comfortable to wear. It is supportive enough to hold the breast pump in place securely, while not feeling restrictive. There were no parts of the support that scratched, poked, pulled or pinched the skin. I wore the support both alone and over my nursing bra. The product was just as effective either way."
"I received the "Tuxedo" style which is black with white trim. It is very appealing and classy looking. For others that enjoy more colour, there are other prints available which are just as fashionable."
I could include more, but don't want to bore you.
And here is some of the constructive criticism...
"There were a lot of latches on the front of the bra to close it. Too many for my liking."
"I didn't really care about the style and colour because no one sees it but me."
"Taking the equipment out and apart was a little challenging and sometimes my milk would leak onto the bra as I was taking the equipment off."
"I found it took extra time to set up to pump rather then just pumping like I normally do, it took me some time to get comfortable."
"I think the product is over priced. I think that $30-ish would be fair. I think that the competitors are over-priced as well."
At this point, I'd like to thank all the product evaluators for their thorough and honest opinions. As I've said many times before, we LOVE feedback because that is one of the many ways that we can make things better for YOU, our customer! And isn't that what it's all about?
So keep your eyes peeled for further announcements about PumpEase as this marketing campaign unfolds. If you have any feedback about PumpEase, please leave it in the comments below. Bring it on!
And for the record, I have STILL yet to hear from iParenting Media. I guess they're not calling me back huh?
These "seals" look very impressive. I can't paste them into this blog post for reasons that I will explain later. I had always thought the product had actually won an award, like an actor wins an Oscar or like someone wins "Business Woman of the Year". You know, a "no strings attached" kind of award because you actually did something really well?
Nope.
Back-track to September 2008: I was at the ABC Show and while I waited in the Starbucks line-up, I started a conversation with another exhibitor (those were long line-ups!) Her product had won numerous awards a number of years running. I was very interested in the exposure that she said the awards had given them, so when I returned home, I looked into several of the award programs for PumpEase. To my surprise, you had to PAY to apply and the fees ranged from $275 USD to $450 CAD per product.
Money was tight then as a start-up, but I felt I had to "play the game" - you know, save face amongst my competitors. Wouldn't the consumer wonder why my competition had received awards and I hadn't? From the research that I've done, most consumers do NOT know that these "award programs" are really not awards at all, but high-profile, paid product reviews (just sayin'). We had no money, so I filed it in the back of my mind for a while...
This year, I decided to go for it. I conducted what I thought was thorough research, bit the bullet and applied for an iParenting Media Award. Note: for the remainder of this post, I am ONLY speaking about the iParenting Media Awards program unless I mention another awards program specifically.
I was required to send in 4 identical samples - the same size; the same colour; the same style. I also had to submit a product graphic electronically and of course include my cheque for $300 USD.
The communication from iParenting Media was very good. I got automated messages when they received my entry, when they were shipped to the reviewers, and when they were being evaluated by the reviewers. I also received an email from Jeanne Murphy, Program Director, requesting information from me as follows:
Where did you learn about the iParenting Awards program?
How would you rate our customer service to-date on a scale of 1 - 5 and why? (1 being the best)
What tradeshows do you exhibit at or plan to exhibit at in 2010?
Do you submit your products to multiple awards programs? If yes, what is your criteria for choosing?
Do you have any specific comments or requests of how we can serve you better?
I answered every question and got a nice thank you email back from Jeanne. And every email that I received reminded me that I could login on Wednesday, November 11th, the day the winners were announced, to see a "snapshot of feedback" from the reviewers.
Fast-forward to November 4th. I got a voice mail from iParenting Media stating that I still had to pay the $300 fee. When I called them back, I told them that I had sent a cheque along with my submission, but they said they never received it. After checking that the cheque hadn't cleared my account, I paid the fee with my credit card over the phone.
Now it is November 12th. I had completely forgotten that the awards were announced on the 11th - too busy at Remembrance Day celebrations with Girl Guides I guess. The morning of the 12th, I logged into my account and there was nothing there. I went to the announcement page and I was not on the list of winners for the Feeding category. I checked my account again. Nothing. No feedback. No "you won" or "you didn't win". So I emailed "help@iparentingmediaawards.com" at 7:52 am:
Good morning,
I am logging into my account this morning and see no feedback for my product PumpEase hands-free pumping supports at all.
Please get back to me asap with an explanation.
Thank you,
Wendy Armbruster Bell
I RECEIVED NO RESPONSE.
I called their "Hotline" 1-888-808-IPMA (4762) and reached voicemail at EVERY extension that I tried. I left two voice mails.
I RECEIVED NO RESPONSE.
On November 13th at 8:27 am, I emailed Jeanne, the nice woman I had corresponded with a few weeks prior:
Good morning,
I logged into my account yesterday morning and saw no feedback for my product
PumpEase hands-free pumping supports at all. I called two different people and sent an email and got no response.
Can you please tell me why there is no feedback? I am wondering if my submission got messed-up somehow as I had sent a cheque WITH the product, it got lost, and then a week or so before winners were announced, I was called to say that I hadn't paid. I then paid my credit card. But it looks like my submission was overlooked.
I would really like to hear from someone before the weekend. You can call me toll-free at the number below.
Thank you,
Wendy Armbruster Bell
I RECEIVED NO RESPONSE.
On Monday, November 16th, I checked my account again. Feedback! And this is what it said:
Thank you for participating in the iParenting Media Awards program. Your award status is determined by the results of surveys that were answered by three independent, external evaluation sites. The reviewers answered many questions about your product that contributed to a score for your product. They also offered subjective feedback which is shown below. We provide this information as a courtesy to your company. The feedback does not count toward determining your score and award status. They are just the opinions of our reviewers. (OK, so how is this feedback useful to me then?) It went on...
What features would you add, remove, modify or enhance about this product?
1. The only recommendation I can come up with as far as the PumpEase hands-free pumping support is the packaging that the product arrived in was damaged and open with the product falling out of the bottom of the package. I'd suggest marketing the product in a more stable package for the sales floor.
Ummm... I shipped my 4 samples in a sturdy box that I regularly use for media samples. Proper packing materials were used so that nothing could shift during the shipment. Therefore, the only explanation to this feedback is that after receiving my samples, iParenting then shipped the individual PumpEase out to their reviewers in unsuitable packaging - perhaps an envelope? My packaging is a BOX, similar to boxes that you buy regular bras in. I challenge iParenting Media Awards to find ANY bra box that would have survived being mailed in an envelope! Secondly, we don't ship to our retailers in envelopes; we ship to them in cardboard boxes (obviously). In fact, our retailers LOVE our packaging as it is attractive, chock-full of information, merchandises well and has an oval cut-out in the front so that consumers can see and feel the fabric. How an improperly packaged "one-off" shipment can be compared to bulk shipments is beyond me (note their statement that "the package should be more stable for the retail floor").
2. This product would occasionally slip as the pumping process would go on. The clips held it snugly in place; however, the tube had a tendency to fall, especially as the cups became fuller during the pumping process. Modifications to hold the product in place better would be nice. While I loved the vibrant colors, it might be nice to see the product come in a more neutral shade for occasional discretion.
If the PumpEase was slipping during the pumping process, then the reviewer was wearing the wrong size. Due to the fact that our sizing is based on the customer's bra size and the fact that over 80% of women are wearing the wrong bra size, sizing is a challenge for us for our online sales, but a challenge we have risen to quite nicely (if I do say so myself). I can proudly say that we currently have a return rate of 0.25% for sizing AND manufacturing defects combined. We have 3 size charts on our "Fitting Room" page and a video demonstrating how to measure yourself for a PumpEase. We also work with customers over the phone and/or via email to make sure they have the correct size if they are unsure. Did the iParenting Media Awards people even consult the size chart on the back of our box? If they did, were the reviewers confident that they were wearing the correct bra size? Did they take a simple Overbust Measurement to make sure they were getting the correct size? Something tells me... No.
And as far as the "neutral shade" - we already have one. It is black with white binding. It is called Tuxedo. It is one of our best sellers. Did the reviewer even check our website before deciding that the print we sent was our only offering? Remember, the 4 samples I sent had to be identical in colour, size, style. Something tells me... No.
3. I would suggest offering better packaging: show some kind of detail on the front of the packaging to actually reflect the use of the product. Also offer a list of breast pumps this support works best with. This did not work well with my pump.
The detailed image reflecting the use of the product is on the back of the package - there is only so much real estate on a product package. Our packaging was professionally designed by Pencilworks Studios Inc and we get nothing but compliments on it by consumers and retailers alike. Funny that this reviewer states that the PumpEase didn't work with "her pump" but neglected to state what brand of pump that is. Hmmm... how convenient. We GUARANTEE PumpEase to work with ALL breast pumps on the market therefore this feedback is kind of irrelevant in my opinion. We have sold close to 10,000 units in our first full year of business and NOT ONE of our measly 0.25% of returns was because it "didn't work well with my pump".
So obviously I was quite deflated by this feedback. This is my invention and believe you me, a lot of blood, sweat and tears has gone into it. As I read and re-read the feedback, I realized that every point was entirely moot: I should redesign my packaging because iParenting Media doesn't know how to properly package something for the mail? And I should redesign my product and/or adjust the sizing because the reviewer was wearing the wrong size? Or maybe I should offer yet another neutral fabric because they can't read my website? Finally, I guess I should redesign my product to "work with the mystery breast pump".
And then on top of all that, I realized that I never received any answers to my custom question - something that was supposed to be included in my $300 submission fee. I guess I could ask them about that if they would actually return my phone calls or emails.
As a heads up, you CAN resubmit the same product (and yes you have to send them another $300 to do so) but ONLY if you change something. So I had another question: Do I have to change something that was mentioned in the feedback or can it be anything? So I called Jeanne Murphy citing that I had indeed received my feedback (albeit 6 days late), but that I had questions about the process. That was on Monday, November 16th.
I HAVE RECEIVED NO RESPONSE TO-DATE. TODAY IS DECEMBER 15th.
If there is one thing that gets my goat is poor customer service or in this case, NON-EXISTENT customer service. It is appauling that this business (and yes, this "award program" is just a business) is falling over backwards to help you UNTIL they get your $300 in their hot little hands and then you are completely ignored.
With the risk of sounding like a sore loser, I wanted to make you, the consumer and fellow Mompreneurs and inventors, AWARE of the truth behind the iParenting Media "Awards". I was discussing the situation with my husband and a colleague of mine, attempting to justify (to them and probably to myself) choosing iParenting Media Awards over the other programs. I told them that iParenting Media Awards was the only one that was ISO9001:2000 certified. My husband, who works for Toyota Canada Corporation (who is ISO 14000 certified), reminded me that being ISO certified ONLY means that they follow a set of standards for their business processes, NOT that they have any integrity! (touché honey!)
And here's the clincher... I have since found out from several recipients of the award that after you "win", they send you an 8-1/2 x 11" certificate and about 6 of each of their two styles of seal stickers (the regular IPMA and the "HOT"). Then they advise you that you can't USE said stickers on anything but demo products and promptly try to sell you a licensing package, starting at $1000 USD and UP, to use the iParenting logo. That's right folks. You WIN the award but you are not allowed to use the seal without paying them yet even MORE money. You can't use it on your website; you can't use it in a press release; you can't use it on your packaging; you can't use it in your trade show booth. You CAN use the words "iParenting Media Award winner" and you can display the certificate in public and that's it.
Funny how that wasn't mentioned anywhere in the submission process.
In fact, I had to dig through the deep, dark bowels of their website to find ANY mention of it at all. I found it under Customer Service/Benefits and Promotion of Award Earners. As you can see below, they gloss over the point, not mentioning a dollar amount at all, but only vaguely mentioning a "licensing package". Make no bones about it, these paragraphs are written "just so" so that unless you have prior knowledge of the licensing fees (and thus can read between the lines), it is easy to misunderstand what they are stating:
Do I have to pay to promote my IPMA Award if I win?
No. iParenting Media provides all IPMA Winners with a permanent Award Certificate and we encourage you to display the certificate when promoting your Award. IPMA winners have equal opportunity to participate in on-camera interviews at industry events. iParenting Media also provides each Award winner with a document that clearly provides the proper way to maximize the benefits of your IPMA Award at no additional charge. Additional promotional opportunities are available for purchase.
So they give you a paper certificate like this one: But you can only use it at trade shows or other public events. You can't put it on your website or in a press release or anywhere else for that matter. You can't give it to all of your retailers, because you only get ONE copy and are not permitted to reproduce it in any manner.
Are physical stickers available if we want to put them on our winning product?
Yes. Each iParenting Media Award winner is provided with a courtesy supply of both Classic and Hot award stickers for use on their demonstration units. Additionally, each IPMA winner is provided the opportunity to purchase additional seals at any time in the future for the winning product as long as the product is not modified from the award-winning version.
I wonder how much these stickers cost? Oh and if you pay the licensing fee for the digital images, you can't make your own stickers with it - you have to buy their pre-made stickers.
Are digital images available if we want to put them on our website, print materials or packaging?
Yes. iParenting Media Award winners may license the Hot and Classic IPMA Award images. A variety of packages are available to suit your needs.
Again, no mention of the cost and certainly not that the licensing will cost you more than three times the cost of the product submission itself!
We do not require final packaging, only final product. Our philosophy is that some companies with outstanding products may have large marketing budgets or recognizable characters to influence a consumer's purchase. Therefore, the packaging is not included in our criteria.
So the packaging is NOT included in IPMA's criteria, yet 2 out of 3 of the feedback that I received was regarding my packaging. Hmmm... I think iParenting Media Awards is talking out of both sides of their mouth.
I say BUYER BEWARE.
I have since done extensive research on some of the other award programs mentioned at the beginning of this post and I can tell you that they are NOT all alike. As an example, PTPA discloses the licensing fee in detail and UP FRONT for the use of their logo if you win their award and if you don't win, you can resubmit within 6 months for NO EXTRA CHARGE. You also get your evaluator feedback in its entirety and TWO custom questions.
So will I submit to another program? A few weeks ago I said, "ABSOLUTELY FREAKING NOT!" Obviously, my perception of these programs was "slightly" skewed by my experience with iParenting Media (duh). Now that some time has passed and I can look at the situation more objectively, I will say, "Never say never!" If you can look at the process with your eyes wide open, knowing up front the ENTIRE cost that is potentially associated with it, considering the accompanying PR and exposure that is received as a "winner" (which is usually very good), then you can make a sound business decision on whether you want to pursue it. On the other hand, if you go in thinking it will be a $300 deal only to find out that in order to promote your winning product you have to cough-up big bucks (big-non-budgeted-for-bucks), then they kind of have you by the balls, don't they? Anywho, if I take the plunge again, you'll be the first to know!
Have you had any experience with these awards programs? Not yet perhaps, but were considering submitting? Did you think they were real "awards" like I did? Drop us a comment below. We'd love to hear ALL about it!
So who has a connection at INFACT Canada or the Breastfeeding Committee for Canada or better yet, at the Department of Justice of the Government of Canada - the department responsible for the upholding of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms? Specifically Section 15(1) and Section 28. Let's lobby for some breastfeeding ads like this one! Short, sweet and OH SO to the point!
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A funny thing happened to me one morning a month or so ago. I got up, made the bed, got cleaned-up and wandered down to my office to do some work before the kids got up. This was all pretty much the status quo until I looked at the email inbox on my laptop as I walked through the kitchen... KABOOM! I had over 20 eNewsletter sign-ups, lined-up one after another, in my inbox... huh?
Our website states that we will send you a FREE Breastmilk Storage Guidelines fridge magnet if you sign-up for our eNewsletter. We would get people signing-up "here and there" but nothing like this! I looked at the sign-up forms and the subscribers were all being referred by this particular website that listed "free" things. We Google our brand name (PumpEase™) regularly to monitor our brand, address any customer service needs and to keep an eye open for new testimonials etc. We had seen the fridge magnet offer on other "freebie" sites for quite some time, but nothing notable had ever happened in terms of a flurry of subscriptions.
Then it got referred to another give-away site and another and another...
I finally had to temporarily pull-down and rethink the offer. By the time I did that, I had almost 90 subscribers - all in less than 2 hours! Now this may sound like peanuts to some (business) people, but for us, a start-up early in its second year of business, it was quite substantial.
We have now reinstated the offer, however with a built-in email address verification so we at least know we are receiving valid email addresses in exchange for the fridge magnet/envelope/postage and labour spent fulfilling them. For example, one of the email addresses was "idontthinkso@no.com". Um... no.
I contacted the owners of the "freebie" websites, explained our situation and after a few days, the eNewsletter sign-ups petered-out to a more "normal" frequency. I should note that after verifying the email addresses manually, we fulfilled every single magnet, including one that we sent all the way to Russia (our offer is now only good in North America).
This is the first time I have ever experienced anything that belonged to me or any of my websites going "viral". It was scary and exciting all at the same time. Scary, because I felt a bit out of control (yes, I'm a control freak), however the reinforcement of the sheer power and speed of the internet was both inspiring and most definitely exciting!
According to Wikipedia, viral marketing "refers to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses. It can be word-of-mouth delivered or enhanced by the network effects of the Internet. Viral promotions may take the form of video clips, interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, brandable software, images, or even text messages. The basic form of viral marketing is not infinitely sustainable."
A simpler definition, from marketingterms.com is "A marketing phenomenon that facilitates and encourages people to pass along a marketing message." So basically, glorified word-of-mouth marketing (my fave marketing channel).
If you Google "viral marketing", the results exceed 4.2 million. Wikipedia has captured the top organic result and following it you will find "The Six Simple Principles...", "7 Tricks..." and "The New Rules...". So there is lots of free advice out there. But do you think viral marketing can be planned? Or do you think it just happens?
According to the CMA (Canadian Marketing Association) "Viral is Not a Strategy" - you can plan for it all you want, however, in the end, you don't decide if something goes viral... everyone else does.
In my humble opinion, you can look at and learn from other campaigns that have gone viral. Be inspired by them; dissect the "why" of the viral outcome; try to pull something from them that may work in turn for your business. And keep plugging away - it will happen when you least expect it.
On November 17, 2008, 'A' TV did a 4 hour live morning show from one of our retailers, Mothering Touch, in Victoria, BC. Well, apparently the (male) host liked our product! I think we should give him a job! Check out the 50 second clip and tell us what you think.
Hi everyone! Just a quick post for some shameless self-promotion... The Ladies Who Launch have featured me this week in "Meet this Member". Check it out and pass it on! Hugs, Wendy.
On January 27th of this year we participated in our very first consumer trade show - Westcoast Moms’ Vancouver’s Largest Baby Shower. It was a ton of fun, we made a lot of great new contacts and PumpEase™ hands-free pumping supports were very well-received.
We interrupt this blog post for a very important message: A big thank you to my hubby for staying up until 3 am with me the night before! Those “little” give-aways take a long time to make! And also to my bff Lorelei for riding shotgun the day of. We now return to our regularly scheduled blog post.
The morning of the show, I woke-up to 2 feet of snow here in Coquitlam (the show was in East Vancouver - about a 30 minute drive west). Now some of you might be thinking, “Two feet of snow….big deal!” However, if you are saying that, I would guess that YOU don’t live here in the lower mainland where a mere dusting of snow causes sheer panic and chaos. We never get snow = people don’t know how to drive in snow = sheer panic and chaos.
I had to work really hard not to let all the negative thoughts into my head… a much harder task when you’ve only had 3-1/2 hours of sleep!
no one is going to show-up
we’re going to get into an accident on the way there and there will be pumping supports strewn all over the freeway
Lorelei, my bff, won’t make it to ride shotgun (Lorelei doesn’t like to drive in the best of weather, let alone snow!)
Well positive thinking prevailed once again: it was sunny with absolutely no trace of snow in East Vancouver, the people were lined-up around Heritage Hall to get in and Lorelei beat me there!
The Westcoast Moms Baby Shower format is primarily targeted to first-time parents, most of which are still expecting. I have a display on my table at trade shows: a woman’s torso with a nursing bra, a PumpEase™ hands-free pumping support and breast pump horns - pretty much the works. It always cracks me up watching the expressions of people, especially the “Dads to Be” as they walk past my display. It ranges from giggles and nervous laughter, to disbelief and shock, to pure and utter horror. If I get the chance, I always make light of the display and make a point to assure the Mom or Dad-to-be that after experiencing the miracle of childbirth, a breast pumping display is “old hat”. “You’ll get over it!”, I say to them with a big smile on my face (it is so true)!
So Lorelei and I notice Shaw Cable making their rounds at the show. Bianca and her cameraman approach me because of the display. She said it was a “good visual”. Well the rest is history. Watch the clip below.
Snugabell Mom & Baby Gear is proud to announce that $2.00 from the online sale of every PumpEase will be donated to the Best for Babes Foundation to help moms achieve their personal breastfeeding goals woot! woot!
They are currently "sitting pretty" to receive a donation of $20,000 from the Chase Community Giving Program to support their cause, but NEED YOUR VOTE to maintain their position in the top 200 until the contest closes at midnight EDT on Monday, July 12, 2010! This will take no more than two minutes of your time and will benefit moms and babies everywhere today and in the future.
We are excited and honoured to announce that earlier this month the PumpEase hands-free pumping bra was named a 
programs are a business, plain and simple. They are out to make a profit just like the rest of us. Having said that, there are businesses out there that provide a good product/service/customer care and then there are others that.. well.. don't. Guess which one I am going to choose to deal with?
Ummm... I shipped my 4 samples in a sturdy box that I regularly use for media samples. Proper packing materials were used so that nothing could shift during the shipment. Therefore, the only explanation to this feedback is that after receiving my samples, iParenting then shipped the individual PumpEase out to their reviewers in unsuitable packaging - perhaps an envelope? My packaging is a BOX, similar to boxes that you buy regular bras in. I challenge iParenting Media Awards to find ANY bra box that would have survived being mailed in an envelope! Secondly, we don't ship to our retailers in envelopes; we ship to them in cardboard boxes (obviously). In fact, our retailers LOVE our packaging as it is attractive, chock-full of information, merchandises well and has an oval cut-out in the front so that consumers can see and feel the fabric. How an improperly packaged "one-off" shipment can be compared to bulk shipments is beyond me (note their statement that "the package should be more stable for the retail floor").
Do you require final packaging?
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